Wednesday, 9 August 2017

The two promotional tools used by businesses all over the world, including restaurants, are good advertising and effective Public Relations. Although you are looking and would like to publicize your restaurant and popularize it as much as you can, keep in mind that the medium of promotion that you utilize has a significant effect on the success of your promotion.

Though both these tools are used to help you increase the volume of consumers in a restaurant, you still may be confused about which tool suits you better. Restaurant marketing is essential to ensure the smooth functioning of your restaurant. But let me help and point out the difference between restaurant advertising and restaurant public relations.

Public Relations is subtle whereas Advertising is direct. In restaurant advertising you usually pay an individual or a firm to market your produce; here your restaurant to consumers. The goal of advertising is to garner attention to the services and products that you offer. Whereas on the other end of the spectrum, PR, is much more subtle, and makes use of an external source that you trust to promote your products and services to current and future clients.

Public Relations is convincing, Advertising is obtrusive. Restaurant PR works towards constructing a positive image about your restaurant which in turn helps to convince your target audience and converts them into your customer base. Advertising utilizes a more insistent marketing strategy to garner a reaction from the target audience. As a restaurateur, you are first required to know what kind of objective you’re looking to achieve and how you want to influence your consumer. This will help you pick the mode of communication that best suits your restaurant.

Restaurant PR ensures reliability whereas Restaurant advertising creates doubt. While customers read articles, reviews, or blog about your restaurant, or watch it being covered in the news on the TV or radio they are sure that it is reliable and credible as this information is provided to them by an impartial third-party. On the other hand, with you advertising your restaurant, the consumer is conscious of the fact that the information that they are being presented with is provided by the restaurant, and as a result more likely to be suspicious of the message that they are receiving.

Public Relations usually work out cheaper than advertising. Free publicity for your restaurant is always welcomed, though it doesn’t happen quite that often. Restaurant public relations is often more cost effective and is often used by restaurateurs who are unable to afford direct advertising. Now since that fact has been established, although advertising is more costly, it makes sure the message of your restaurant reaches a more specific / targeted audience base, while PR covers a larger, more general audience and doesn’t focus on a particular demographic.

Public Relations helps build trust whereas Advertising brings exposure. A restaurateur wants to create a sense of trust among his current and potential customers. This is possible with the aid of public relations. On the other hand advertising usually aims to create more exposure that is crucial for restaurants as well.

The knowledge of the difference between Restaurant advertising and Restaurant public relations will help with successful restaurant marketing.

Ribbon-Me is a restaurant management and consulting company based in Dubai and aim to offer turnkey hospitality services to their customers. Their well skilled team has over 15 years of hands-on global experience and they have successfully delivered and continue to provide a comprehensive range of services to corporate and individual clients across the Middle East.